Why Choose a Custom Fishing Rod?
Do you really think the pro-anglers are fishing the Classic and winning tournaments with factory-made fishing rods? Or that other sportsmen/women use "off-the-shelf" sporting equipment in their professions? No way. Whether a professional angler or professional sportsman/woman, you can rest assured the gear and equipment they're using to compete at the highest levels of competition is not only specialized, but handcrafted, tuned, custom-fit, balanced, and leveraging the very best premium components that technology can muster. So, technology in the fishing industry, especially the fishing rod business, is truly "the mistress" - that fishing rod might "look" like it's store-bought, but it's been crafted by a custom builder to ensure maximum performance and therefore, that fishing rod is custom and hand-tuned... handcrafted to fit precise, specific, and extreme angling requirements.
True, there are not too many anglers who own custom fishing rods. There's a simple reason for this: they're not mass-produced and therefore not available to the public in general, or at least not to the point that an angler has the opportunity to make a retail purchase at their local tackle or fishing store. However, with the advent of improved technologies, and the availability to meet a myriad of new potential customers via the Internet, many more anglers are leveraging the opportunity to design and purchase their own customized fishing gear.
Production fishing rods are typically designed and made for the average person with average skills and are manufactured using average components, all of which will provide reasonable performance. However, those who demand more from their fishing arsenal turn to custom rod builders to acquire that specific tool Hardbait Lures they require for the style of fishing they prefer and the performance they expect.
Let's walk through a brief example: Pick up the exact two casting rods from a local retailer, place the same reel on each of the two rods, and then place them into their respective "optimum" parabolic shapes by pulling the tips using the line. Now, note where the fishing line touches the blank and note the tip twist (or torque). If they were the same, the line will touch at the same points and the twist (or hopefully, lack of twist) would be equivalent as well. Now cast. Distance and accuracy should be equivalent, however, in every case, this will never happen with an "off-the-shelf" fishing rod because they are manufactured using guide placements in the exact same spot of every blank being constructed (i.e., they are not made of homogenous or equivalent materials and will never be the same). Currently, I know of no company that mass-produces and also takes the time to individually tune every guide under both a static and dynamic load prior to wrapping guides... both of which are required to achieve optimum guide placement and ultimately rod performance (not to mention a few critical requirements that are never performed before guide placement... such as 'splining,' balancing of the handle system, tuning guide systems, etc.). Don't get me wrong, there are companies that take the time to complete a step or two of the overall process, but there are none that perform all of the required steps. A professional custom builder strives to ensure that component integration is accomplished to elicit the very best performance from each fishing rod. If a customer takes the time to identify and choose those premium components that compliment their angling style, technique, and specifications... then you can rest assured that the custom builder works to ensure their finished sport-fishing equipment performs the way they expected it to... and then some.
Although it is true that most manufacturers today do produce some great high quality products, you simply cannot ignore the fact that they are made with the average angler in mind. Do you know who the average angler is? I sure don't! Taking a look at all of my friend who fish, not one of us is similar in size, casting style, or grip preference to name just a few variables. Yet, the manufacturers would want us to believe that each of their off-the-shelf products will match our angling styles and us perfectly.
When you decide to fish a custom-built rod you are adding another dimension to your sport and enjoyment. There is nothing quite like the thrill of making perfect casts, hooking and landing a fish on a honed surgical tool that has been handcrafted for you. You don't have to depend upon whether some individual was having a good day at the factory or not when they wrapped the guides on your fishing rod, if they chose the best pieces of cork for the handle system's grip, if the time was taken to ensure that the components were placed on the rod for optimum performance, and that the best quality components were used.
Another great reason for choosing a custom-built rod is that you have so many choices of premium components! Perhaps you have found the an 'action' that is suited for you, but you're not satisfied with the type of guides, the quality of cork, the thread wraps or perhaps you want to move up to a better quality reel seat. You don't have this type of choice unless you decide an opt for the custom choice.
Off-The-Shelf (OTS)
The overall properties of the "Off-The-Shelf (OTS)" fishing rod is extremely dependent on the components attached to the blank, and more importantly the process by which those components are attached to the blank. Thus, the number, type, and placement of guides; the wrapping; and the choice and placement of handle material/components totally affect the end use. When it comes to the overall quality and performance, we all know that not all fishing rods are created equal.
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